Úlfr Lv 1II
Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Úlfr stallari Óspaksson, Lausavísa 1’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 348-9.
text and translation
Esa stǫllurum stillis
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fekk auðar —
innan þǫrf at hvarfa,
ef, hǫrbrekka, hrøkkva,
hrein, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni.
Esa þǫrf stǫllurum stillis at hvarfa jafnan innan stafnrúm Haralds—fekk auðar ónauðigr—, ef, {hrein hǫrbrekka}, skulum hrøkkva undan tveir fyr einum þingamanni; ungr kenndak mér annat.
‘There is no need for the lord’s marshals always to idle inside Haraldr’s prow-area—I acquired wealth without coercion—, if, pure flax-slope [WOMAN], we must flee two before one þingamaðr; as a youth, I got accustomed to something else.’
notes and context
Before Haraldr harðráði embarks on his expedition to England in 1066, some say that England may be difficult to conquer because of the army known as þingamenn, whose soldiers are said to be twice as brave as Haraldr’s men. Úlfr responds with this st.
The sense of the st. is that it would not be worth Úlfr’s while to go on the expedition, if Haraldr’s warriors anticipate in advance that they will flee before an Engl. force inferior in numbers. — [1] stǫllurum ‘marshals’: A stallari ‘marshal’ was one of the most prominent retainers of a king, whose duty it was to communicate the king’s decisions to the populace. Haraldr harðráði had two marshals, Úlfr and Styrkárr. — [5, 6] hrein hǫrbrekka ‘pure flax-slope [WOMAN]’: The identity of this woman is unknown. For similar apostrophes to unknown women, see Note to Hharð Gamv 3/1. — [8] þingamanni: The Engl. company of þingamenn was instituted by Knútr inn ríki Sveinsson (Cnut the Great) around 1018 but disbanded after the Norman Conquest in 1066. According to Saxo (2005, I, 10, 18, pp. 670-81), it consisted of six thousand chosen men (see also ÍF 35, 100, n. 1; ÍF 27, 19 n. 1; Jesch 2001a, 192, 194). The term þingamaðr most likely derives from OE þeningmann ‘servant-man’.
readings
- [1] Esa (‘Era’): Erat Mork, ‘Er ath’ Flat
- [2] stafnrúm: stafni um E
- [2] jafnan: jafna Mork
- [3] fekk (‘fekk ek’): so H, Hr, Mork, Flat, ‘fec ec’ or ‘fæ ec’ Kˣ, fæ ek papp18ˣ, F, E, J2ˣ, ‘fé ec’ 39
- [4] þǫrf: ‘þꜹf’ F
- [4] at: af Flat
- [4] hvarfa: so E, Mork, Flat, hverfa Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 39, F, J2ˣ, H, Hr
- [5] hǫrbrekka (‘hꜹrbrechan’): ‘hꜹrbreckan’ papp18ˣ, ‘haurbeccan’ 39, herbrekkan H, Mork, Flat, ‘herbrezkan’ Hr
- [6] hrein: so E, hreins Kˣ, papp18ˣ, 39, F, J2ˣ, Hr, Mork, Flat, ‘hréns’ H
- [6] skulum: so 39, F, H, Hr, Mork, skulu Kˣ, papp18ˣ, E, J2ˣ, Flat
- [8] þinga‑: þingaða‑ Hr
sources
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
-
AM 63 folx (Kx) — 575r/8 - 575r/15
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr †fec ec† auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, hꜹrbrechan, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulu tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
Holm papp 18 folx (papp18x) — 267v - 267v
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fæ ek auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, †hꜹrbreckan†, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulu tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 39 fol (39) — 30rb/34 - 30rb/34
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr †fé ec† auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, †haurbeccan†, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 45 fol (F) — 51vb/16 - 51vb/19
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fæ ek auðar —
innan †þꜹf† at hverfa,
ef, hǫrbrekka, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 47 fol (E) — 25v/10 - 25v/12
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafni um Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fæ ek auðar —
innan þǫrf at hvarfa,
ef, hǫrbrekka, hrøkkva,
hrein, skulu tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 38 folx (J2x) — 292v/12 - 292v/19
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fæ ek auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, hǫrbrekka, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulu tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 66 fol (H) — 73r/1 - 73r/1
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fekk auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, herbrekkan, hrøkkva,
†hréns†, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
GKS 1010 fol (Hr) — 52rb/15 - 52rb/15
Esa stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fekk auðar —
innan þǫrf at hverfa,
ef, †herbrezkan†, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingaða-manni. -
GKS 1009 fol (Mork) — 18v/12 - 18v/12
Erat stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafna
— ónauðigr fekk auðar —
innan þǫrf at hvarfa,
ef, herbrekkan, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulum tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
GKS 1005 fol (Flat) — 203rb/44 - 203rb/46
†Er ath† stǫllurum stillis
images
stafnrúm Haralds jafnan
— ónauðigr fekk auðar —
innan þǫrf af hvarfa,
ef, herbrekkan, hrøkkva,
hreins, skulu tveir fyr einum
(ungr kenndak mér) undan,
(annat) þingamanni. -
AM 761 b 4°x (761bx) — 397r/2 - 397r/9
images
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